Congressman Altmire has decided to co-sponsor the Child Protection Compact Act!
Whoohooooo!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Whoohoooooo!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Got an email Friday from his DC foreign affairs staffer confirming his sponsorship. Still waiting to actually see his name on the legal document, but I suppose there is some paperwork to file first. For now, I'll take his word for it:)
Thank you all so much for praying! Thank you, also, to Pastor Charles and Amy Gerwig for coming with me as advocates. Not sure I was so willing to have gone alone:) And Paul, thanks for getting on my case about calling his office, even though I was intimidated by the lack of prior response. Yay!
Now to pray that the bill gets passed. And that money can go to bring hope, freedom, and healing for children around the world.
Yeah, God! Whooohoooo!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Showing posts with label politics. Show all posts
Showing posts with label politics. Show all posts
11/10/09
8/25/09
I've Never Asked for 50 Million
If you threw up a few prayers for me and our crew on Monday, thank you.
It meant everything to me, really everything. To all of us. Thank you.
A moment before walking into Congressman's Altmire's office, I couldn't steady my hand to text Paul. My heart raced. An ugly thought sneered, "You don't even know what you're talking about."
And then we walked in. Me. Pastor Charles. Amy Gerwig.
And I felt peace. And confidence. And strength that wasn't my own. It seemed like we all did.
We laid a framework for our involvement in the issue.
We provided stats:
* 158,000,000 children are victims of human trafficking (Actually, I blanked on this stat, so I just said a very vague, "UNICEF estimates that there are millions...oh well.)
* Children that are trafficked are engaged in the worst forms of child labor:
* Enslavement that endangers the physical and moral well-being of children, debt bondage, mandatory military involvement, use of children for drug production and trafficking, use of children for prostitution and pornography, etc.
* The US State Dept lists trafficking as the world's third largest criminal enterprise.
We respectfully asked for his support and cosponsorship of HR 2737:
This bill, called the Child Protection Compact Act of 2009, allots 50 million dollars over three years to the State Department's Trafficking In Persons office (TIP.)
With that money, TIP would provide grants to a number of different National Government Organizations, including International Justice Mission, World Vision, Amnesty International, The Polaris Project, Equality Now, Sojourners, etc.
With previous grant money received over the last 5 years, IJM has been able to investigate foreign pedophiles, obtain official release permits for children enslaved in work camps, and provide after-care services to children who have been rescued from the "industry."
(On a side note - in one city in the Philippines - over a 2 year period of working with local law enforcement - IJM has seen a 75% reduction in child prostitution - 75%!!!!!!!!!!) IJM's work is incredible.
Though IJM has been supportive of current TIP grant making, the money has been widespread (distributed to 43 countries and over 100 different NGO's) but not sufficient enough to eradicate a problem of this magnitude.
That's why this bill is asking for more. The goal is an abolition of slavery in our lifetime.
Altmire's response:
Lots of questions.
Lots of talk that flew over my head (technicalities of the bill process.)
A friendly and informative conversation, certainly a foundation for future advocacy meetings.
Bad news: He didn't sign on the dotted line to co-sponsor the bill right then and there.
Good news: It certainly sounded as though he would in the near future, after reading the bill in its entirety. And we have contact information for 2 of his staffers, in the local office and in Washington. We are to check back in 2 weeks if we haven't heard anything about his support first.
So it's a start.
Please keep praying. For a commitment to be made on his part. For meetings around the nation just like this one. For the bill to be passed. And for the money to impact millions of children internationally.
Thanks, again, for supporting us if you did.
And keep an eye out for that young Amy Gerwig. I knew Pastor Charles would be awesome with Altmire. He has wisdom and knowledge and a quiet confidence and articulation...
But Amy, man. For 18, she was the bomb! Fearless and smooth. She made the situation personal to Altmire because he thought of his own daughters (with comments she made.) I was so proud of her. You go, girl!
Bet she never thought she would ask for 50 mil either.
It meant everything to me, really everything. To all of us. Thank you.
A moment before walking into Congressman's Altmire's office, I couldn't steady my hand to text Paul. My heart raced. An ugly thought sneered, "You don't even know what you're talking about."
And then we walked in. Me. Pastor Charles. Amy Gerwig.
And I felt peace. And confidence. And strength that wasn't my own. It seemed like we all did.
We laid a framework for our involvement in the issue.
We provided stats:
* 158,000,000 children are victims of human trafficking (Actually, I blanked on this stat, so I just said a very vague, "UNICEF estimates that there are millions...oh well.)
* Children that are trafficked are engaged in the worst forms of child labor:
* Enslavement that endangers the physical and moral well-being of children, debt bondage, mandatory military involvement, use of children for drug production and trafficking, use of children for prostitution and pornography, etc.
* The US State Dept lists trafficking as the world's third largest criminal enterprise.
We respectfully asked for his support and cosponsorship of HR 2737:
This bill, called the Child Protection Compact Act of 2009, allots 50 million dollars over three years to the State Department's Trafficking In Persons office (TIP.)
With that money, TIP would provide grants to a number of different National Government Organizations, including International Justice Mission, World Vision, Amnesty International, The Polaris Project, Equality Now, Sojourners, etc.
With previous grant money received over the last 5 years, IJM has been able to investigate foreign pedophiles, obtain official release permits for children enslaved in work camps, and provide after-care services to children who have been rescued from the "industry."
(On a side note - in one city in the Philippines - over a 2 year period of working with local law enforcement - IJM has seen a 75% reduction in child prostitution - 75%!!!!!!!!!!) IJM's work is incredible.
Though IJM has been supportive of current TIP grant making, the money has been widespread (distributed to 43 countries and over 100 different NGO's) but not sufficient enough to eradicate a problem of this magnitude.
That's why this bill is asking for more. The goal is an abolition of slavery in our lifetime.
Altmire's response:
Lots of questions.
Lots of talk that flew over my head (technicalities of the bill process.)
A friendly and informative conversation, certainly a foundation for future advocacy meetings.
Bad news: He didn't sign on the dotted line to co-sponsor the bill right then and there.
Good news: It certainly sounded as though he would in the near future, after reading the bill in its entirety. And we have contact information for 2 of his staffers, in the local office and in Washington. We are to check back in 2 weeks if we haven't heard anything about his support first.
So it's a start.
Please keep praying. For a commitment to be made on his part. For meetings around the nation just like this one. For the bill to be passed. And for the money to impact millions of children internationally.
Thanks, again, for supporting us if you did.
And keep an eye out for that young Amy Gerwig. I knew Pastor Charles would be awesome with Altmire. He has wisdom and knowledge and a quiet confidence and articulation...
But Amy, man. For 18, she was the bomb! Fearless and smooth. She made the situation personal to Altmire because he thought of his own daughters (with comments she made.) I was so proud of her. You go, girl!
Bet she never thought she would ask for 50 mil either.
8/18/09
Confirmed for the 24th!
UNICEF estimates that there are nearly 2 million children in the commercial sex trade worldwide.
2 million kids just like my own. Just like our youth group students.
I can't handle that. At all. But ignoring the reality doesn't help either.
On Monday, August 24th at 11:30, I'll be meeting with Congressman Altmire to urge him to cosign the Child Protection Compact Act of 2009. As IJM states, "This bill supports poor countries’ efforts to stand up to criminals that traffic children by investing in effective law enforcement that puts traffickers and slave owners out of business and behind bars."
I'm SO excited to have gotten a meeting. And COMPLETELY freaked out.
Got some studying to do and prep work till then. Won't be online much.
If you're available on Monday and local, please consider coming along. Paul's Dad (and the pastor of our church) will be joining me. The more voices, the better.
If you can't make it this time, please pray. I would cherish your prayers much. I don't know what I'm doing. And this is out there for me. But 2 million times worth it.
Thanks and Much Love,
Kristin
2 million kids just like my own. Just like our youth group students.
I can't handle that. At all. But ignoring the reality doesn't help either.
On Monday, August 24th at 11:30, I'll be meeting with Congressman Altmire to urge him to cosign the Child Protection Compact Act of 2009. As IJM states, "This bill supports poor countries’ efforts to stand up to criminals that traffic children by investing in effective law enforcement that puts traffickers and slave owners out of business and behind bars."
I'm SO excited to have gotten a meeting. And COMPLETELY freaked out.
Got some studying to do and prep work till then. Won't be online much.
If you're available on Monday and local, please consider coming along. Paul's Dad (and the pastor of our church) will be joining me. The more voices, the better.
If you can't make it this time, please pray. I would cherish your prayers much. I don't know what I'm doing. And this is out there for me. But 2 million times worth it.
Thanks and Much Love,
Kristin
1/21/09
Change
I LOVED this post:
Today during President Obama's speech he called on Americans to personally sacrifice so that change can come. The idea of sacrifice for the greater good is something that historically Americans have done but that's not history from my life time. Sacrificing so that someone else can break even is something our country is no longer known for.
I wonder if Obama will be able to lead our country into that change. I hope he can. But Obama will have to be a very smart, strong, and persuasive leader to bring about this change. A large part of his success as a President will be reflected in whether or not he can do this, on whether or not we are willing to change... (post in its entirety here.)
Today during President Obama's speech he called on Americans to personally sacrifice so that change can come. The idea of sacrifice for the greater good is something that historically Americans have done but that's not history from my life time. Sacrificing so that someone else can break even is something our country is no longer known for.
I wonder if Obama will be able to lead our country into that change. I hope he can. But Obama will have to be a very smart, strong, and persuasive leader to bring about this change. A large part of his success as a President will be reflected in whether or not he can do this, on whether or not we are willing to change... (post in its entirety here.)
1/13/09
Thought Provoking Editorial
Matthew Parris recently penned this article, "As an atheist, I truly believe Africa needs God."
In it, he claims that, "Missionaries, not aid money, are the solution to Africa's biggest problem - the crushing passivity of the people's mindset." A shocking claim that, "Confounds [his] ideological beliefs, stubbornly refuses to fit [his] world view, and has embarrassed [his] growing belief that there is no God."
In another section of the article, Matthew also observes that some of the most impressive African members of the Pump Aid team (largely from Zimbabwe) were, privately, strong Christians. In reference to this assertion, he states, "It would suit me to believe that their honesty, diligence and optimism in their work was unconnected with personal faith. Their work was secular, but surely affected by what they were. What they were was, in turn, influenced by a conception of man's place in the Universe that Christianity had taught."
"Their work was secular, but surely affected by what they were." For anyone in a secular work environment, there's no greater challenge than this... to stand out in excellence and to let our conception of God affect who we are.
In it, he claims that, "Missionaries, not aid money, are the solution to Africa's biggest problem - the crushing passivity of the people's mindset." A shocking claim that, "Confounds [his] ideological beliefs, stubbornly refuses to fit [his] world view, and has embarrassed [his] growing belief that there is no God."
In another section of the article, Matthew also observes that some of the most impressive African members of the Pump Aid team (largely from Zimbabwe) were, privately, strong Christians. In reference to this assertion, he states, "It would suit me to believe that their honesty, diligence and optimism in their work was unconnected with personal faith. Their work was secular, but surely affected by what they were. What they were was, in turn, influenced by a conception of man's place in the Universe that Christianity had taught."
"Their work was secular, but surely affected by what they were." For anyone in a secular work environment, there's no greater challenge than this... to stand out in excellence and to let our conception of God affect who we are.
11/4/08
A King and a Kingdom
We voted today over Paul's lunch break. It was an honor to take our kids into the polling place and exercise a costly American freedom. We are grateful for those who have sacrificed their lives for such a privilege as this.
Tonight we will forgo sleep to watch a giddy Wolf Blitzer, Brian Williams, and a seemingly always angry Keith Olberman report the election results. We will surf news media channels and hear how Americans also exercised their right.
Tomorrow we will drag ourselves out of bed and go about our ordinary routines no matter who gets elected. Paul will head to work and I'll head to a friend's home to drink coffee, share stories, and allow our kids to play together. The nation as a whole will also go about its normal everyday happenstance.
There will be single moms waiting on tables to get by one more day. There will be senior citizens who have been cut by the bottom line. There will be teachers trying to make a difference in the lives of students. There will be nurses changing IV fluids and doctors sharing hard news. There will be politicians wielding power. There will be people who need to hear about Jesus.
Tomorrow we will enter into another harried day. On hearing final results, some will be excitedly giddy. Others will stare straight ahead of them, traumatized in despair. There will be the apathetic among us who don't care either way. There may be riots and protests and always ugly racial acts. Whatever happens, we know the world will be looking on.
Whatever happens, there is also a King looking on. And not just looking, but fully engaged and working amongst us. A King with a Kingdom and a love for His people that looks beyond flags and empires and elephants and donkeys. This King, this Jesus, has told us that we're a citizen of a different kingdom, a forever one. (Philippians 3:20) We've been asked to pray for
His kingdom to come, His will to be done, on earth as it is in heaven... (Matthew 6:10)
Yeah, today we performed our civic duty to vote. But tomorrow we've got just as much work to do at the polls of our beliefs. If His kingdom is to be ushered onto this soil, we've got to live out His word to defend the rights of the fatherless, the weak, the poor, the alien, the marginalized...We've got to live out His word.
If we're pro-life, then we've got to put substance behind our votes. Counsel a pregnant teenager and support a crisis pregnancy center. And if we're really pro-life, then be advocates of the lives that have been born. Give to children in the foster care system, be advocates for adoption, and tutor a child and give them a chance with education.
If we're really God followers, we can't subscribe to this whole doom and gloom thing that I've heard echoed by Christians all over the place. Our hope is not in this kingdom of America, nor in our president. Our hope is in Jesus Christ. We have hope embodied in God who conquered even death. We have hope in the Holy Spirit who convicts and challenges and comforts. We have hope in the word of God, the good news that is still good news. We have this One Hope, and that Hope should pattern our thoughts, our to-do lists, our dreams. And this Hope is as secure as an anchor. (Hebrews 6:19) It's as secure as ever.
Whatever happens, there is a King and a Kingdom and a Hope and a Purpose etched on our lives. Our purpose is to seek and trust and love and usher His kingdom to this earth. The life that Jesus calls us to should never be easy, but should always offer hope - always.
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